Our bloggers have been gearing up for the start of the 2014 World Cup this week, with lots of football-related posts around the network.

Vincent Kompany, captain of Belgium, says the spirit in his national team is the envy of many sides in the world. Could he be the captain of a cup-winning team? Photograph: David Rogers/Getty Images

"You don’t need to be a maths genius to work out that Brazil is the favourite to win the World Cup. The Seleção has won the competition more times than anyone else, they have a strong team and they are playing at home." But could Belgium win the World Cup?Alex Bellos kicks us off with details on how to build your own team ranking system.

Fuleco, the mascot of the 2014 World Cup, is not doing enough for conservation. Photograph: AP/FIFA

Fifa's mascot for the Brazil games is inspired by the real-world Brazilian three-banded armadillo Tolypeutes tricinctus. Unfortunately, it's an animal that is dangerously close to extinction. Henry Nicholls asks why Fifa isn't doing more to help conservation efforts for this wonderful creature.

A chance game: A vendor sells stickers of the Fifa World Cup album, on the streets of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Photograph: Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images

How many people do you need in the room in order for it to be more likely than not that two of them share the same birthday?Surprisingly few, it turns out. Alex Bellos looks at how many football players competing in the World Cup could - and should - share the same birthday.

Sepp Blatter has suggested that football could be played on the another planet. But which one? Photograph: Tristan3D/Alamy

England captain Bobby Moore kissing the Jules Rimet trophy as the team celebrate winning the 1966 World Cup final against Germany at Wembley Stadium. Also pictured, left to right, George Cohen, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters. Photograph: Keystone/Getty Images

Last year a report organised by the German Federal Institute for Sport Science suggested that traces of amphetamines had been found in the urine of the West German team who competed in the 1966 World Cup. Vanessa Heggie uncovers the history of this claim, and the surprising role of British football in the science of drug detection